>> people are calm. a lot of people are standing outside, not going into the building. the most damage i saw was a cracked window. >> central tokyo seem to be all right. older buildings may have suffered more damage. it is not obvious from here. the real dramas are clearly northeast japan along the northeast coast. we're seeing that picture, large scale fires, you see the waters flooding in. that's where the damage is concentrated. >> we have listened to the japanese prime minister appealing to the people to remain calm. a difficult thing to do, certainly, under these circumstances as you fear along the coastline. the northeast there. the approach of yet another tsunami. what about people trying to get

a hold of loved ones. family members. i'm seeing a lot of that on my twitter account. people trying to make contact with their friends and family. >> yes. i think the problem is that the phones are very jammed. everyone is on the phone, on their mobile. even the land lines are a bit difficult. i was able to get through to my family in the first half-hour after that happened. they were fine. the system i think is overloaded. i suspect that rather than damage to the telephone's infrastructure. so there will be a lot of anxiety. particularly for people who have family in the northeastern coastal areas. >> indeed. what's interesting is in the midst of this, and all these aftershocks that you're experiencing, and we've been reporting after the initial 8.9 with, we've heard a 6.4, a 6.8. even so, people are still able to watch their television.

the power lines don't appear to have, the downing of those power lines don't appear to have necessarily had a big impact. certainly in the tokyo area as you point out. >> tokyo from what i can tell is fine. the damage is really, as i look out my window, i can't see any damage. there is a big oil fire in a steel refinery to the east. we're hearing reports of a, an older prewar building where there was some kind of school graduation ceremony going on. where a ceiling fell in and some people were injured. i don't tokyo is the problem. >> you feel comfortable on the seventh floor to remain there rather than the people trying to make their way home. presumably it took a while for you to come to that decision. >> not really. this building seems to be quite solid. by and large, i mean, if we look

at what seems still to have been a more destructive earthquake in 1995. by and large, modern buildings built after 1980, at least, remain standing. they might have been badly damaged and rendered unhabitable. they might have had to rebuild them. but fingers crossed and i hope these aren't famous last words, the big modern buildings absorb the shock. the danger, personally i always feel the danger is being on the streets. the air conditioning units, the thing that are loosely put on the top of the buildings could come crushing down. i'll be staying here for the time being. >> i totally understand that. as we reported there, naoto kan, the prime minister, announcing he will head up this newly organized emergency response headquarters. how efficient is that likely to be? and tils, because presumably in

the past, a similar headquarters would have been set up. would that be right or not? >> yes, after the earthquake in 1995, the government came in for a lot of criticism rightly. their response was very slow and poorly coordinated. i think a lot of lessons were learned from that. when i was out just now on the streets talking to people, it was striking how well prepared everyone was. lots of people have hard hats next to their desks which they're wearing on the street. and although we can't make the judgment yet, my assumption is that the government is certainly better prepared for this one than it was 16 years ago. everys how bad the damage is. these pictures we're seeing from the coastal areas are very

dramatic but they're quite, quite at a not that i remember over angle you're looking at. i'm not clear yet how far inland this damage has gone or whether we're just talking about a few hundred meters of the very fringes of the sea. japan is not a country like indonesia. it is a very rich country. and it has a very active construction industry which for decades has been concreting over the coastlines. to a rather depressing extent. what that means is that the coast is by and large pretty well protected. there aren't a lot of areas of open coast, certainly not in the towns. so plenty of these places do have seawalls in place. they have the pods which absorb the tides. and a big earthquake in japan doesn't come as a surprise to anyone. so there's certainly no excuse for not being prepared. >> absolutely. richard lloyd parry, editor for

the times. thank you for talking with us and explaining your experience there as this 8.9 earthquake struck where you are. and you have made the decision to stay safely in that building. just for a moment, let's listen in to nhk coverage. nhk tv there in japan. and listen to what they're able to report at this point. >> reporter: heads of the various political parties, our secretary general and our -- vice deputy president are seeking cooperation from other parties. and the other political parties given the situation, i have not been in could not tack with the other party leaders but i am sure that we will have their understanding.

so what does that mean? for a while, the deliberations will be suspended? details about that, our party officials are getting together with other party officials to discuss the matter. the opposition and the people's new party. the details will be taken care of by the party officials who are meeting. you mentioned the aftershocks and the second and third waves. what you ask the people of japan to do. first regarding the tsunamis, alerts and warnings are out. and until these alerts and warnings are lifted, please do not go anywhere near the coast. or rather, please evacuate or he is cape to higher ground. or on to the higher levels of

very strong high buildings. please continue to do so. and please do not try to judge by yourself what is safe and what is not. please keep updated on the information issue by the meteorological agency. they'll be issuing. >> on the aftershocks, as a general rule we cannot ask everybody to do the same due to the aftershocks. there could be building that's could be damaged once again. there are people inside the building and it could be safer to remain inside the building. it is really case by case. at any rate, there are the possibility of aftershocks.

so therefore, those of you who are inside the buildings, please make sure that you do not be hit by furniture collapsing even inside strong buildings. and if you are worried about the safety of the buildings, please try to evacuate to a safer place nearby. at any rate please stay calm and act calmly. >> going forward, would you be asking for support from overseas? >> well, all right partially we have been having some offers to cooperate from foreign countries. to the foreign machine industry. so such information is now being sorted out. and while we've already had the

earthquake a few hours ago, first of all, it is the self-defense forces as well as our police who are trying to cope with the situation but we are prepared to ask for future requests of relief from foreign countries. seven years ago we had a earthquake -- >> that was the chief cabinet secretary. earlier on, of course, prime minister naoto kan speaking. >> listening there to nhk television. the japanese cabinet secretary pretty much advising people what they need to do if they live along the coastline. pleading for people to move to higher ground if at all possible to evacuate that area, because more tsunamis are coming in across there. and of course saying if you're in a building, there is more aftershocks to come. just beware of any furniture in the buildings. if you feel a need to evacuate that area, i want to bring in

anna in hong kong who will downme now as we continue our coverage of this 8.9 earthquake that has hit japan. now of course, the tsunami warnings that have covered a region that takes in more than 12 different countries. >> the pictures we've been looking at, that's sendai, that's the town, the city on our screens a we speak. that's where this tsunami was apparently, a four meter wave that crashed on shore. then a ten meter wall right through sendai. this is a city of 1 million people. this is northeast of the country on the island, the major island in japan. it is part of the miyagi province. this is where the devastation has taken place. and as you can see, this is the aftermath of that massive wave. you are looking at ships. you are looking at trucks. you're looking at cars.

this wall of water has just gone through all these buildings and we don't know how many people are inside. we don't know whether these people are able to get away. whether they're able to take cover. we've seen the pictures. this waffle water went straight through. and has hit sendai. let's have a listen. >> japan's meteorological agency says it measured 8.4. the agency has issued a tsunami warning for the japanese pacific coast. you're seeing a fire completely raging out of control. this is live coverage of an oil refinery in chiba prefecture. ichihara area. the fire completely going out of control. you can see firefighters trying to water down just the surrounding areas. probably as far as they can get close to that fire that looks like bigger than some of the

surrounding buildings, completely raging out of control. firefighters obviously not being able to contain that blaze at this time. live footage of the fire under control, firefighters unable to contain it in the ichihara area. the meteorological agency says a 7.3 meter tsunami, one of the largest hit, fukushima prefecture. tsunami, a 4.1 struck in the north. all hit by waves of four meters. as this unfern over goes out of control, we are feeling aftershocks from the large earthquake. even the studio as we speak.

this is over two and a half hours after the earthquake. we're still feeling aftershocks in our studios. the pacific tsunami warning center has extended the area where tsunami waves may strike. this now includes indonesia. those of you watching this program from indonesia, had a by, australia, zeemd, hawaii and the coast including mexico, chile and peru. earlier the center issued a warning for japan, russia, guam, wake island and taiwan. the pacific tsunami warning has extended the area for tsunami warnings may strike. obviously the tsunami has already struck these areas. some of the cars there plunging into the water. the tsunami affecting the prefecture just about a few hundred kilometers north of tokyo. for our viewers that are just

tuning in, this is a warning out for indonesia, hawaii, australia, new zealand, mexico, chile, peru, russia, the north marianas, guam, taiwan. first tsunamis of course not necessarily the largest. the sea draws back, a tsunami can hit the coast at a rapid speed. obviously of what is happening to many cities in northern japan. i spoke to an expert earlier this week when a tsunami does hit. do not climb in the cars. move by foot. move by foot to higher ground as soon as possible. this is not just a japan story anymore. we're talking about tsunamis. possibly hitting indonesia, hawaii, australia, new zealand, pacific coast including mexico, chile and peru. once again, that inferno going pretty much out of control in chiba prefecture.

the firefighters not being able to contain that large blaze in an oil refinery. flooding is rampant. in many cities in northern japan. the tsunami is moving upstream. the rivers engulfing cities, farmland, homes. the earthquake magnitude of 8.4. unprecedented in japan. one of the biggest quakes ever to hit the country was the quik january 17th, back in 1995. that had a magnitude of 7.3. it left 6344 people dead. another powerful quake occurred in the indian ocean in december 2004 with a magnitude of 8.9 at the epicenter. the death toll came to 220,000 in ten countries. in more recently a devastating earthquake struck new zealand last month. japan's meteorological agency says the quake registered an estimated magnitude of 6.3.

but today, about two hours and a half, 2:30 ago, a large earthquake, magnitude 8.4 hit northern japan. it has led to fires and that fire, an oil refinery, completely under control. a large infern oex chibo prefecture. the oil finery up in blaze. lighting up the whole area in yellow. you're seeing live footage of an oil refinery in chiba refinery in ichihara. hundreds of thousands of people in tokyo have been left stranded after train and subway services were suspended. east japan railway company says it stopped train operations,

including the bullet trains though no major damage has been reported so far. the tokyo metro subway company has also suspend all operations. company officials say it will take time to check the safety of all tunnels before resuming operations. the magnitude 8.4 earthquake that hit northern japan leading to secondary disasters, including that inferno, blaze. where firefighters have yet to be able to contain the chiba prefecture in the area. the oil refinery has been set, has been on fire, the blaze not being able to be contained. in miyagi prefecture, the intensity of seven maximum was recorded. i say maximum. that's the maximum on the japanese seismic scale of zero to seven. the same intensity as the great

earthquake back in 1995. the welfare facility has collapse in the north eastern prefecture. five people have been confirmed dead and several people are still missing. meanwhile, in neighboring tokyo, a woman reported to have died after a building collapsed on her. a woman once again reported to have died after a building collapsed on her. neighboring tokyo. obviously this figure is without a doubt going to be revised. we are only getting information as we speak. you're watching the blaze in an oil refinery in chiba prefecture east of tokyo. the ichihara area. the firefighters having a very difficult time, obviously.

to contain that large fire there. police in miyagi prefecture say an unknown number of people are missing in several cities where the tsunami waves swept through coastal areas inland. many buildings and cars have left, been left submerged. the prefecture says eight people have been confirmed dead in four prefectures in northern japan. prefectural police say at least eight people have been confirmed dead in four prefectures in northern japan. in the northeastern prefecture, a local fire department says a welfare facility has collapsed. it says five people have been confirmed dead and several people are missing. we are feeling the aftershocks of the quake in the studio as we speak. in miyagi prefecture, one person has been confirm dead after

being struck by a fallen object. we are feeling the aftershock of the earthquake in the studio as we speak. and there you can see, that is a live shot of one of our lights inside the studio. we are feeling the aftershocks of the large earthquake that happened over two hours and 30 minutes. one person has been confirm dead after their car was swept away by a tidal wave. neighboring tokyo, two people are reported to have died after a building collapsed on them. we're turn our camera, live camera to a few hundred kilometers north of tokyo. it looks like a tsunami has engulfed parts of that

prefecture as well. you see cars floating from our live camera there. we're back to that footage of that fire. it looks like more smoke now in explosions from that fire. that oil refuneralry in, that refinery in the north causing several damage, done not only to buildings but to this oil refinery where firefighters have been having a, obviously a hard time being able to contain that blaze. they are saying the country is ready to offer any assistance to the japanese government to deal with the aftermath of the quake. japan's police agency is

dispatching 900 strong emergency teams to the quake hit zone. it is also gathering disaster information from the urgency security headquarters. local police are evacuating sea side areas using helicopters, patrol cars, and traffic signs. japan's foreign minister has ordered his officials to start preparing to accept foreign assistance. he also said, he has told him to check on the safety of foreigners living in japan. prime minister naoto kan and his ministers have gathered at the prime minister's office. where an emergency task force has been set up to respond to the quake. the task force will gather information on the damage and prepare for possible tsunami. the chief cabinet secretary spoke earlier in front of the press, in front of media explaining the situation and on the plans going forward for

disaster relief. he is calling on the public yet about the dangers of aftershocks. the aftershocks, we are feeling right here in the studio along with tsunamis that can follow and to stay vigilant. they needed to stop the plans to attend to emergency plans. now looking at our coverage in sendai. our live camera in sendai, northern japan. the governor of miyagi prefecture has asked the central government to send self-defense force units to deal with the situation. miyagi >> they stay person relevant could not tacking local governments and related agencies to assess the extent of the damage.

>> we've been watching the dramatic footage there. i think that's naoto kan who is about to address the media. i peg your pardon, he addressed them earlier. the government has said there will be tremendous damage in japan. that is the warning that they, you'd a short time ago. it is affecting 19 countries. civil sirens went off in honolulu in hawaii. this has huge far-reaching consequences. countries like australia, new

zealand, taiwan, they've all issued tsunami warnings. these drama images came to us a short time ago. this is that wall. that that massive wall of water just going through the cities. it is just so much force there as you can see. it is pushing ship, trucks, cars, anything in its way. the government is saying so far they can confirm eight dead. looking at that, we know the death toll will rise. dan sloan is a resident in tokyo and he witnessed the quake. tell us what you experienced. >> reporter: the quake sfwruk 6:46 this afternoon. we are and we are about 300 kill om terps from the epicenter in the northeast

in the sendai area and could feel very strongly the movement here in tokyo. to put things into perspective, though, japan has a lot of experience with its earthquakes and its alarm system is actually trig ord telephones and across tv signals so we had a large heads up that a large earthquake was coming in the large geographic area was put on tv screens. again to put things into perspective, where in earthquake struck it has a large sea coastal community. the city of sendai has a population of about 1 million but overall northeastern japan is rather egrarian and not kind of a population-dense place like tokyo. nonetheless, as you're hearing, we have started to see from the

government some early casualty report. breadth of the tsunami that struck later in some cases over 7.3 meters. and estimates that could be as high as ten meters. really have more or less just crushed the coastline and any kind of area that could be exposed to those large waves. here in tokyo there have been sporadic fires. i think one you're looking at is in cheba in -- east of here at an oil refinery in ichihara. but nonetheless in addition to the aftershocks that we continue to feel, there will be tsunamis that are spreading down the coast. all the way to okinawa and certainly throughout the entire pacific rim. >> dan, we're looking at these amazing pictures of this water. it just hit the coast and just kept on going and we don't know when it will stop and it's just

picking up everything in its path. as you say this is finding land but we have seen buildings be taken away, cars you know, trucks and i think that's the really frightening footage of those trucks and those cars on that road watching this wall of water head towards them and they -- and they can't do anything. they can't do anything so maybe, dan, you can tell us a little bit more about that area that has been so hard hit. >> caller: indeed, in addition to the description that you just provided obviously the northeastern part of japan has a fair number of nuclear power facilities and some of those had been shut down in the wake of the earthquake and obviously tsunami, some of them are in coastal areas. one plant said there was some damage but obviously it is telling us -- >> dan, because we are looking at live pictures and it would appear that in an aftershock is occurring. the camera there is -- has been

shaking quite violently and as you can see a fire there. this of course is nhk, japan's public broadcaster. >> the situation is fluid and as soon as we get more information we will be able to provide it to you. in in the northeastern prefecture of fukushima a local department says a welfare facility has collapsed. s says five people are confirmed dead and several missed. miyagi, police say one person has been confirmed dead after being struck by a falling object. one person has been confirmed dead after their car was swept away by a tidal wave. neighboring tokyo two people are reported to have died after a building collapsed on them. fleece miyagi prefecture, says an unknown people are missing. where tsunami waves swept

through coastal areas inland, many buildings and cars have been left submerged in the cities after the afterwaves hit. the earthquake with magnitude 8.4 was unprecedented in japan. one of the biggest quakes ever to hit. back on january 17th, 1995. it had a mag touched 7.3. left 6,343 people dead. this is what it looked like in sendai newsroom when the earthquake hit. obviously monitors, things rolling off the desk. staff trying to assess the damage and what's going on. when that large earthquake hit. 8.4 in the miyagi prefecture. this earthquake follows another powerful earthquake occurring of course in new zealand last

month. japan's meteorological agency says the earthquake estimated a magnitude of 6.3. this one being of course a lot bigger at 8.4. numerous people are having various or serious trouble communicating with their family members and friends with their cell phones in the wake of the quake. this is what it looked like in our newsroom in tokyo. close to the japanese diet. in some areas the speed of the internet communication has been slow. japan's communication giant has created special headquarters to check the damage of their systems. according to toshiba elevator assumes that most elevators -- >> all right we've been listening in to nhk television there in tokyo. of course, some terrifying situations unfolding there as you see inside the newsroom,

inside buildings, people just running for cover. this 8.9 magnitude quake that hit about 3 1/2 hours ago now, in fact 2 1/2 hours ago, and we've been along watching what has been happening and nhk has delivered some extraordinary pictures as they have covered this. and as we've seen, the people in japan very used to earthquakes hitting but not of this magnitude. i mean this is one of the highest magnitude quake that has hit japan. indeed, we have learned that it's about the seventh largest quake that's hit since we've started recording earthquakes and just want to go over some of the information we know that the point. we were hearing there from nhk confirmation of at least eight people who had been killed but sadly that number is more than likely going to rise. so we will continue to follow this. but of course residents across northeastern japan here in shock this hour.

the island rocked by an 8.9 magnitude quake. just extraordinary strength in a city and a country that is used to these sorts of quakes. built very sturdily. a tsunami washed ashore shortly after that, and of course that's where the big damage comes, that's the deadly aftermath of an earthquake like this. it washed up cars, it washed up boats. we can see there this is older tape but we can see that tsunami rushing towards the shore and of course people given advice to make sure they can seek higher ground. now the tsunami watches and warnings are in effect for this entire region. we were reading out a list over 12 different countries affected. taiwan, philippines, indonesia, papa new guinea, russia, guam of course. it's under tsunami watch, too. the problem there is people have no higher ground to seek. so we're watching now this

again, this is taped material that we had a little earlier from nhk. that debris, the mud rolling in across the land there, thankfully in most instances, this was across farmland. so at least we are dealing with a situation where there are fewer people but are there still people on the ground there affected by this and the worry is them trying to rush and evacuate ahead of that roll of mud and debris that brings cars and boats all collected together. now back on land of course the quake rattled tokyo residents who -- they're used to these kind of events as we've said but smoke was seen rising from a poured building. people poured out into the streets from their office buildings. we spoke to one witness to this who choose remain in his building. he works for "the times" there, he was the asia editor. he decided that he felt safer inside of the building but advice given by authorities there is if you can possibly get

out of those buildings it might be a better idea. there's furniture. there are going to be aftershocks and they can be deadly especially when everything has been unsettled after that 8.9 magnitude quake. now japan's kyoto new agency reports there are a number of injuries and we have spoken to you about these confirmed deaths of eight at this point. there's been at least one major aftershock since the original 8.9 quake. in fact a few 6.4, there was a 6.8. we're keeping an eye on that and as we were talking it our reporter kyung lah, experienced an aftershock there. let's go to our ivan cabrera now who is there at the international weather center keeping an eye on all of this. and of course, i mentioned, ivan, where there is nowhere to run here. there's no high ground. >> each government is going to have to really get the word out

and let folks know where they have to go. head inland and at least 15 meters high. 50 feet. if you can do that. this video is just continuing to see this, just unbelievable to me. some these structures. it looks like some of the buildings were intact. essentially lifted off of their foundation as the tsunami came in. two things going on in japan, we're continuing with an earthquake flight attendant japan. we've now had a stronger magnitude quake than what we had in haiti and that was just an aftershock of a 7.1. we are going to continue to get these aftershocks. when you get a great earthquake of an 8.9, you will get these aftershocks into the six magnitude, into the seven magnitude which in themselves can cause significant damage. that's threat number one. that will continue for self hours. perhaps days. perhaps weeks as they get a little bit weaker. the second threat that is ongoing is this tsunami threat. if you're wondering yes it's hit japan but the reason they're still under a tsunami warning

and a major tsunami warning is not done. it is not going to be safe for the folks of japan until two hours after the last tsunami hits. and we are not there yet so again an active tsunami threat and an active earthquake threat as far as those aftershocks continue for japan. that is for japan where we've already confirmed a measurement as far as the wave heights of 7.3 meters. that is unbelievable. 24-foot-wall of water coming in to sendai there. sendai airport is gone from this 8.9. i want to go through the rest of the -- essentially warnings. the entire pacific rim is now under a tsunami warning or watch. we are now at the most severe level from the pacific tsunami warning center. if you are near a coast and it is near the pacific coast, get away from the coast and move inland and move to higher ground. if you're watching us from hawaii, that includes you where

you have about 2 1/2 hours before essentially the first tsunami arrives and all of the islands in hawaii are going to be impacted. the tsunami remember, wraps around the islands here and it will approach in 2 1/2 hours at 3:00 a.m. local time. remember the indonesia tsunami hit further to the west so hawaii was not hit hard because we had all of these land masses that essentially buffeted from them getting the hardest hit but you are not going to be protected if you're watching us from russia where the tsunami is about to arrive now. marcus islands 8:53 gmt. taiwan near there 9:30 gmt is your arrival. if you're watching us from the philippines i know that you are, arrive in the philippines, northern philippines at 9:55 gmt. further to the south at 10:26 gmt. these times are crucial because we're running out of time the closer that you are to that epicenter to get you to higher

ground. marshall islands. indonesia 10:49 t. papua new guinea on the flap arrival at 11:30, gmt. solomon islands a few minutes there after. kiribati. again as a mentioned hawaii 3:00 a.m. local time as we have been hearing the sirens, these tsunami sirens have been ongoing there, warning folks of the impending, potential catastrophic tsunami that is going to arrive. australia you're in it as well. mexico, rose mary, now we're getting into again on the other side of the pacific here, mexico, oregon is now under a tsunami watch into alaska, new zealand as well further to the south. chile in on it. ecuador, colombia, peru. talking about the arrival there literally 24 hours from now. so plenty of time for folks to be warned but region that i'm most concerned about obviously in japan here further to the north into russia, there is

taiwan. arrival in just about an hour and then the philippines and the southern philippines and we get into indonesia, papua new guinea and into malaysia as well. the tsunami travels at about 800 kilometers per hour so it's a pretty simple program that we punch in and that we're able to determine exactly the arrival of the first of many waves to come. >> yeah, thankfully there is some predictability involved in these tsunamis as they attack the coastline. thanks for going through. i want to go back to ana, who is part of hong kong and that region. >> thank you, rosemary. now to bring in conor evans who is in honolulu. he's our correspondent on the ground there and i believe that sirens have gone off in honolulu. what can you tell us? . >> yeah ana we've heard the civil defense sirens going off a while.

i was there when first issued and basically a lot of people don't know what's going on. a lot of tourists who are in the area right now, not too familiar with what a civil defense siren means. we did see several fire trucks and police officers staging, getting ready to evacuate people from the low-lying areas. i spoke to some people with the hotels along the beach in waikiki. planning to put some of their emergency plans into action. they're planning to evacuate people to higher floors. floor six and above. that is the plan right now. they were waiting for the official word from the governor's office. before getting in touch with people in their hotel rooms but that is the plan right now. as far as i understand. now i was driving around downtown to try to get an idea of what's going on and how people are reacting to this and our people are beginning to evacuate and the first thing that you notice at every single gas station on the island there is a very long line of cars. people are filling up their tanks. they're going to grocery stores, right now they're preparing what people are being told is to evacuate inland about a half mile and to get to higher

ground. we're expecting the first waves to hit the hawaiian island chain at 3:00 a.m. this morning. >> carter, the pacific tsunami warning center it estimates the tsunami could cause wave magnitude of up to two meters above normal sea level. so what would that mean for places in hawaii? >> caller: well you know there are a lot low-lying areas right along the shore and there are several areas in waikiki beach a heavily tourist area would be one of them that's fairly low lying and for quite a distance back as well and as you've seen with prior tsunami when the waves come to shore they keep to keep going and they envelop everything in their path and again waikiki would be a big concern right here where i them in honolulu because it's is a heavy tourist area right now. there are a lot of people this time of the year and again a lot of them still don't know what's

going to. >> carter, how many people are we talking about will have to evacuate those coastal areas? >> caller: you know it's up to a half mile from the shore. that's what they're telling people. there are a little bit over a million people as far as the population goes in the hawaiian island chain right now. as far as the number of people that could be affected by this we're not really sure right now but we do know every single coastal area on all sides of all islands will be a-ed when these waves come ashore. the question now is how big are these waves going to be? how strong are they going to be? and the tsunami warning center and the civil defense in this area they have a seersz of buoys offshore several miles to several hundred miles so as the tsunamis and the first waves go in get a little closer, they'll get a better gauge of how powerful these waves are and how high they are and what sort of damage. but again what we're being told 3:00 a.m. this morning that's when the first waves will start to arrive. >> what is the local time now?

>> caller: the local time right now is 10:45 p.m. so we've still got about four hours and 15 minutes. >> all right and what are authorities saying? do they think they can get everybody out of those low-lying areas? everybody can get on safety? or are they concerned that they won't be able to get that message to everybody? >> caller: well you know, this is something that people who live here are familiar with. they hear the civil defense sirens and they know what to do. this is something that the authorities in the area train for all the time. the great thing if there is a good thing about this right now is that there is a long lead time here. we do have a good amount of time, a good lead warning here before the first waves arrive so that does set people up for success, if you will, but it is a big job right now. a lot of people to notify and it is late at night so a lot of people will not have their tvs on and know what's going on. >> as you say, carter, just gone

10:45 p.m. have people obviously turn on their televisions and seen what's taken place japan? >> caller: yes. people are turning on their televisions right now and seeing the devastation in japan and i think that's what's really concerning people right now. i spoke to several people in line at the gas station and basically what they say is they feel like this is the reem deal. i grew up in hawaii and i've been through this before. in fact this time last year there was a tsunami warning very much like this and when the tsunami actually came to shore it was only a couple of inches. this time people feel a little bit different. they think this is the real deal. >> yeah, well, carter, they're saying meters. they're talking two meters this wave that could hit all those countries and i think that we're talking about more than 20 countries but you know hawaii's certainly in the firing line. tell us about previous tsunamis that have hit hawaii. you say the one last year was

only a couple of inches but what about in previous years, any larger ones? >> caller: if i am correct in my hawaiian history i believe the last devastating to hit the hawaiian islands is back in the 1950s and that struck part of the big island of hawaii. a town called hilo. >> i think we've just lost our carter evans who is reporting live in honolulu, but as he's said it's just gone 10:45 p.m. people are hearing the news of what is taking place japan. they know that the sirens have gone off and that they're being told to go to higher ground. let's now go to christy. >> let's map out this ongoing disaster for you and show you exactly where all of this is unfolding. the epicenter of the quake was right out here in this sea. it's about 130 kill om terps to the east of the city of sendai. it took place at a depth of

about 24 kilometers which is very shallow indeed. the site it lies about 373 kilometers from the capital of tokyo, we've been watching argument these images of the buildings shaking the capital and the population there forced to take cover. the quake, it was evenel in the beijing, china. but there is no doubting where the greatest impact has been. tsunami waves have affected much of the east quote of the areas around tokyo submerged. the most dramatic scenes that you've been watching playing out in the coastland and the farmland in sendai. reporting tsunami up to ten meters that's 33 feet. 33 neat height. that wall of water puring through is clearly going to have a devastating impact on everything in its path. now, i want to show you some video out of tokyo as the earthquake struck earlier today. now this was the in our tokyo bure bureau. you can see our cnn producer running to her desk.

let's take a look at it. >> the tremors lasted for several influenced in tokyo but tokyo again 373 kilometers away from the epicenter. ana? >> yeah, chrissy, just heard from the u.s. geological say that 18 aftershocks have

occurred since that 8.9 quake shook japan, all of those aftershocks were 5.4 magnitude or above the strongest being 7.bon. go back out to rosemary church at cnn. >> thanks. we do want to recap you now on these tsunami disaster that's still unfolding in northwestern-eastern japan. it's too early to say how many people are missing, dead, or injured of course, that the point and although we heard a number there from authorities that the scope was perhaps around eight but fear here of course is that that number will unfortunately and sadly rise. an extremely powerful 8.9 quake struck. about 150 kilometers off of honshu province. that's an unprecedented quake for japan. used to many quakes but not of this magnitude when you're talking about 8.9 and there's been half a dozen or so serious aftershocks, some up to 6.8 so

that's an earthquake in itself as an aftersnoung a tsunami, of course that great speeding wall of water slamming into the coastline that was just a short time ago and a number of waves following that, too. it rolled over towns and farm fields and of course there were many, not just the one but this one was the dramatic when you see this wave of water and mud with boats, trucks, cars and indeed people, too. that is the sad story. that we're following here as this unfolds before our very eyes and you can see there fires on the ground. now motorists were hit of the wave. trying to move faster than that wave as it approached. you can see them there and just look at this fire. now several have erupted across the area that was hardest hit. this actually an oil refinery in the city of cheba and tsunami warnings have been issued right across the wider region. the pacific rim and we are told more waves are expected for

japan and while watches and warnings are up in some 20 or so countries now we're hearing. from russia to guam, australia, indonesia, taiwan, whole range in the u.s. state of hawaii, evacuations are now under way. so we're keeping a very close eye that. kyung luh is with us now. on the line i'm hearing. we haven't spoken for a while now. no doubt you've had an opportunity to gather some more information on this. what are you able to tell us particularly about the tsunami and the effects there on the coastline. >> information actually has been really difficult to gather, rosemary. let me explain why. this is one the only phone lines that we have out of bureau. phone lines are very difficult to get right now. whether it be a mobile line or

it be a land line. the system is simply jammed as people are trying to reach their loved ones especially if they're trying to reach up north. so the infrastructure right now is simply overload. it's only three hours since the initial quake struck. information is starting to seep in. the local authorities and the lome media reporting a vast array of numbers that at this point we just simply can't confirm concluding a number of deaths, how many fires there are and there are reports of injuries you know across the country, but at this point trying to confirm that information, trying to get really understand what's happening up north has been extraordinarily difficult. i can tell you that we are still feeling aftershocks here in tokyo. that they are certainly nothing like that first one we felt, the first quake that we felt three hours ago and they seem to lessen in strength as the day progresses but the aftershocks

are continuing. here in tokyo the rail line does not appear to be back up yet as we last checked. people have been sort of walking around in the streets. it's a bit of an extraordinary sight if you go by any of these parks. the parks are simply filled with people who are standing around trying to figure out what they're going to do next so it's really been a bit of an unusual day in tokyo as people try to gather their thoughts and try to remain calm and try to respond and in a calm manner. we want to make clear the situation in tokyo is vastly different than what's happening up north. up north is the impact of the tsunami. it is the immediate emergency trying to rescue people out of that region. trying to collect the lives there. trying to make sure that people are okay and try to respond to that additional emergency. here in tokyo because you have such a dense population base. if you don't have effective

public transit you will have a serious problem. people for the most part are behaving very calmly. a lot of the buildings have been evacuated. we're the only people left in this particular building and at this point it's the easy commute home but there is no easy way to get home now. >> yeah, and kn kyung lah, whee rail line stops people in tokyo who know that this is a serious situation because they are used to earthquakes all of the time but once the railways stop that's a different story, isn't it? >> once the railways stop and then they announce that they will be shut down for a while, that is extraordinary. this is a country where if your train is maybe ten or 15 seconds late you start to question it. you start to wonder, what's wrong? so when a rail line and this is -- there's an extensive rail system here in japan when it's completely shut down that that signals that there's an

international emergencies going on. >> it is very difficult to confirm information in a situation like this. it's ongoing. this is not over yet. people are still waiting for more waves, more tsunamis there in japan and right across the pacific rim. but we were hearing information a little earlier about confirmed deaths. eight confirmed deaths but unfortunately -- i mean this -- that number will rise in this sort of situation. >> i can tell you from listening to just the various national newscast here, many people are far saying that the number is much higher. we have not been able to confirm any numbers. but certainly when we're talking about a magnitude -- an earthquake of this magnitude an impact region that is so wide, we're expecting that there could be a rise in those initial numbers. >> and of course the witness reports we've received from people there in tokyo, as you point out and as they pointed out, too, a very different

situation for people in tokyo. it's a very sturdily built city. 13 million people as you said. and for those people are very calm but of course it's along the coastal areas because of these ongoing tsunamis where the danger is and what sort of mechanisms are in place for people when those waves do come ashore? >> japan is built with an emergency broadcasting system and as soon as there is a tsunami warning or alert issued there is an immediate bulletin issued whether it be via mobile phone, telephone, radio. this is one of the most plugged in countries in the world. there is vast wireless access. almost every single person you meet has wireless phone. so if that alert goes out it is a message that is received. and this country prides itself on getting the word out very quickly. the problem that we have here is because we're talking about such

a large tsunami, such a large earthquake, it's -- it's very difficult to respond to a very large emergency like that. so the country can be prepared as possible but you can't prepare for everything. i can tell you from being along the coastline that when you stand on the coastline something that you notice in japan is that there are actually gates built into the concrete. they're not the wide sandy beaches that you might department in an island. there are huge concrete walls. there are concrete gates that immediately close once there's a tsunami alert issued. so this is the country that tries to prepare for a tsunami. it has been affected by tsunami that has had people die from tsunamis and its history so it does try to prepare for that but again, what any emergency personnel will tell you is that we can prepare for the worst but we can't prepare for everything especially when you're talking about a large event like this.

we're starting to see even more devastation, more pictures coming through and we're expecting much more of this to come in, what you're watching on your screen here, because everybody has a camera. everybody has a mobile phone. so we're anticipating this is something that we're going to see being shared across the country. many, many, many people felt this earthquake here in japan. >> most definitely, kyung lah, reporting from tokyo. our correspondent there. we don't have confirmed figures of casualties that the point, although we did hear from nhk television a number there thrown around of eight people but the problem here is of course that will rise and we know that the point that the tsunamis keep rolling in on the coastline. it's not only japan being affected by this. there are many countries 20 or so involved, taiwan, the philippines, indonesia, papua new guinea,